whoateallthepies

What I do to support the team is your opinion based on nothing. As for blessing me, what I will tell you is I'm an atheist, so you can stick your religious terminology up your arse.

Taken me a while to post as I've only just resurfaced from returning from the match. Awesome performance that had nothing to do with the manager. At 0-1 and 20 minutes in, we were still pretty awful and spent most of the time arguing with each other as often seems the case nowadays. Lemina however, had spent that time sussing the game and decided enough was enough, the oppo were s*** and someone had to step up to the plate or we were going down. He took control, bossed the game and drove us forward.The rest of the team responded. Romeu started winning tackles, full backs pushed forward, Carillo held the ball/won headers to allow the midfield to run beyond him and even Tadic started to show us he can still remember how to play...no, really. These were players taking responsibility for themselves not the manager waving fairy dust. It doesn't mean we are safe and it still worries me this muppet is in charge. He is the one who hasn't been playing Lemina after all. Just another in a long line of poor decisions. He's absolutely useless and this result should not change the fact he needs to go. As far as I could see his only noticeable contribution yesterday was to make a dismissive gesture towards us when we were singing 'you're getting sacked in the morning' (at 0-1 down). Yesterday showed that the fans and the players as one, which is what matters at times like these. For now, we need to ignore the idiot in the technical area and get behind the team every game from here on and I think we will stay up. Then hopefully we can rebuild in the summer with an actual football manager.

And can someone tell me what Lemina has done to be frozen out at £18m? Does the manger not like his hair style?

Not with this manager we won't. You could see tonight that the players just look totally confused on the pitch. At 1-1 they had two choices, become aggressive and push forward for the win knowing they might risk getting caught on the counter; or invite Brighton on and catch them on the counter; they did neither and just passed the ball around in circles. The manager just stood on the side with arms folded shouting at them to get in the box whenever we had a set piece - genius. He's blagged his way into a job he isn't qualified for and our club is going to suffer as a result. It's criminal, a complete cluster**** from top to bottom.

This. The manager feels under pressure, has probably lost the respect of a few of the players so he brings in someone he knows and thinks will follow his instructions/make him look good. Some managers love using players from a previous life. Didn't WGS bring Williams and Telfer with him? Brian Clough had two or three he pretty much took everywhere with him at one time. Doesn't always work out of course.

Literally nobody can prove if that would be the case or not. If only we still had Channon, Keegan blah blah

The sad thing is that actually it's not that unthinkable. My instinct says there is a sense of things being in panic mode now rather than any organised strategy. MP saying to the Echo that now they have missed out on Walcott they need to change their targets with 10 days to go doesn't suggest people who are in control of things. It's all on a slope to nowhere. Complete this sum: Absent owner + incompetent board + manager out of his depth + demotivated players + no signings = re*eg*ti**

The problem is that the comeback is a theme with this manager, not a one-off. Opposition managers know he is going to go negative once we have a lead and so they change tactics to expose a defence they know is going to drop deep. MP is so poor that he just doesn't see this and then reacts either when it is too late or with the wrong subs (mostly) or both. At half time my one hope was that he was telling the team to be positive, get the third goal and finish them off. Three down, they are out of it, two down, they know they have a sniff and will keep at us. The only solution is to sack him and hope we bring someone in with sufficient nous to keep us up and then regroup in the summer.

According to RKFG in his interview; their focus is on creating the right 'environment' at St. Mary's. Something we all refer to as 'The Championship' - so no, I don't imagine there will be any signings in January.

Who is Surely Long? When did we sign him?

Pellegrino also mused "If De Gea had kicked the ball backwards into his own net instead of forwards in to our half when it was 0-2, who knows, maybe things would have been different for us"

We could start by the board realising we effectively have 11/12 games to stay up (excluding against the 'big' clubs) with the games in March looking like they will go a long way to deciding it. Get a new manager in now who understands what is necessary to squeeze maximum points from those games through a combination of existing players with any heart left plus a few new heads with fight in them. Skill not necessarily required at this stage. Scrap enough points to stay up (couldn't give a toss now how we do it) and hopefully reset the club on an upward curve in the summer. Look - it's Christmas - we can all dream.

My son and I were at the game and said exactly the same thing; and it feels really bad to be thinking like that but these are truly worrying times. I know I'm not the first to say this but it has the same feeling as the season we went down from the Prem. Poor manager, a board that are sleep walking towards disaster, players lacking motivation and critical points slipping away. If we assume no points from the next two matches barring miracles, they may act if we don't beat Palace but that feels too late for me. Agree with the WGS suggestion. He's been away from this level for a while (and Scotland is hardly a top appointment) but not sure there is a better/more realistic option out there. Personally I would act if we lose to Spurs.

Players don't care, board doesn't care, under qualified manager = rubbish. Has a similar feeling to the season we went down for me. Let's hope it's a different ending. Worrying that I'm already thinking the only option is to is get rid of Pellegrino and spend a bit in January but I won't hold my breath.

And that's why I have a lot of sympathy for season ticket holders. Utter rubbish at home this season and they deserve better for the money they invest in the club. I would love to see the back of Puel but I'm not sure there is an abundance of high quality managers out there who are going to put Saints at the top of their wish list. So, it's time the owners and the board decide what they want the club to be from here on - happy just to stay up every season or rebuilt for a serious challenge at top 4 (which we were led to believe in the past was part of the grand plan). If it's the latter then get the money out and get on with it and let the dice role. If it's the former then admit it and we can all rest easy in the knowledge that this is it for the foreseeable future.

Any team can go down until they can't go down. Simples.

I assume that was an interview he gave before we lost 4 league games in a row. If not. it really does demonstrate what a total buffoon he is. If it was before, then fair play to him.

The perfect match summary (only cos I agree with it. Other match summaries are available). But in terms of general play, you can see how Puel wants the team to build slowly from the back with lots of possession and then go for the quick movement in the final third to open up the oppo. It's very different to the pressing game we have been used to (And typically more European IMHO). Problem is, that's the bit we're a bit crap at. Add in a lack of quality in front of goal and its not hard to see why we're struggling to win games. So either he changes the system to suit the players or he changes the players to suit the system and that's only possible with money. Seems to me that he needs to have an honest conversation with the board so that everyone is clear about the way forward.

So you can decide who is and who isn't a proper fan? It says far more about you than those you are so quick to dismiss.

Sorry...just for a second I thought you were seriously comparing us with Chelsea and Liverpool.

They didn't back him in the summer. Why would they back him now in a frantic transfer window when you usually have to pay well over the odds for anyone decent; and that isn't the 'Southampton way' apparently. I admire your optimism but I think you are going to be very disappointed. Puel has what he has and if he can't make it work then he will pay the price whether you think that is fair or not. Players never take the blame.

Only way I can envisage this happening is if we somehow keep it to 0-0 at half time. Everton haven't been much this year and they will expect to hammer us after the WB result. if we stay tight and the players/crowd get frustrated, you never know. Having said all that and as much as it pains me, Everton to win 2-0!

Although we don't know this for a fact, it seems probable. Doubt there will be any money spent in January; maybe a few attempts at loans till end of the season. if this happen it adds further evidence for me that they are planning to sell in the summer.

IF by the end of January we're falling down the league and out of both cups (having already exited Europe) I think it will be Puel who takes the bullet (but not till the end of the season). Not sure that is fair but that's the way it goes. I blame the board for a shocking lack of foresight and investment last summer. Europe+injuries+ suspensions+matches coming thick and fast always stretch even the top teams at this time of the year; and there was a good chance this might cause a perfect storm without a larger squad of more experienced players. I guess they thought the academy players could dig us out and fill in the gaps. Big risk strategy that. Will they be proved right? Like Trousers, I think we will only know end of January; but I'm not hopeful.